If you’ve ever studied computer science at university or taken an online course in programming, there’s a very good chance that you’ve come across the concept of unit testing, where you create tests to check that small portions of your code are doing what you intend.

This aspect of coding, according to the analyst IDC, will be largely taken over by generative AI (GenAI) by 2028 with a massive 70% of such tests being created by AI. Some programmers find unit testing a little bit confusing too, so having AI write better tests should improve the overall quality of code shipped to end users.

Discussing the adoption of GenAI in Asia to create tests, Dhiraj Badgujar, Senior Research Manager for Digital Innovations, xOps and Developer strategies, IDC Asia/Pacific, said:

“The Asia/Pacific market for generative AI assisted software development, including code generation, user interface, testing, and other use cases, is rapidly growing. China, India, and Japan are investing significantly on this to enhance software testing capabilities. The IT sector's robustness and quality assurance focus are driving market progress”

With GenAI writing better and more comprehensive unit tests, it will free up the time of developers who can instead focus on creating new features for the software they are working on. As mentioned, these comprehensive unit tests should also catch more faults with the program so that software will be less buggy.

The idea that we will get safer software thanks to AI is actually pretty interesting when we consider the increasing popularity of Rust which comes with memory safety built in.

One of the reasons there are lots of exploits out there is due to memory issues in software created with low-level programming languages. If more software is made with Rust and AI is being used to make better unit tests then we could potentially see exceptionally solid software being churned out by the end of the decade.

Source: IDC

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Microsoft maintains two client operating systems at the time. There is Windows 10, released in 2015 and about to expire in 2025, and Windows 11, released in 2021.

Windows 10 customers may extend support for at least three years in 2025. This extends the lifetime of the operating system to at least the end of 2028, but may not be free.

Windows 11 is Microsoft's current client operating system. It has received two feature updates already, the latest, Windows 11 version 23H2, in late 2023.

We do know that Microsoft is pushing what it calls AI PCs in 2024. The first Surface devices of 2024 will be AI PCs and plenty of other manufacturers will also release AI PCs.

AI PCs will have Neural Processing Unit (NPU) chips, which help with the processing of data.

The first AI PCs will be released before the next major update release for Windows. At least some experts thought that these would be powered by the next version of Windows, which everyone calls Windows 12 because Microsoft has not confirmed it or its name yet.

Now, it looks as if things are again in flux. Windows 12 might not be released in this form after all. Instead, Microsoft may release a major update for Windows 11, which contains the improvements that would have made it into Windows 12.

All of this comes without confirmation from Microsoft at this point. If the rumors are true, the next Windows 11 feature update will focus on AI. While AI is the focus, sources close to Microsoft tell me that Microsoft plans to introduce a large number of non-AI improvements in the next release.

Windows Central lists features that may be in the next Windows 11 feature update. These include abilities to create 7-Zip and Tar archives, a new Energy Saver mode or the long-awaited suggestions feature for Snap Layouts.

This year's Windows 11 release

A report claims that Microsoft Windows AI PCs will require at least 16 GB of RAM. This is another puzzle piece that does not seem to fit well with what we know so far about Microsoft's plans. At least one AI PC, Dell's XPS 13, will have an 8 GB of RAM configuration option.

One explanation for this could be the following. Windows AI PCs will run Windows 11 just like any other PC. Certain AI functionality on these PCs, maybe those that have to do with local processing, may require 16 GB of RAM.

That's a lot of mays, but large language models clearly work better with NPUs and lots of RAM.

Regular Windows PCs, the majority of PCs that run Windows 11 right now, may not benefit from some of the AI features that Microsoft may introduce in the 2024 update for the operating system.

Will Microsoft release "just" a Windows 11 update in 2024? It is certainly a possibility. This update will infuse more AI into Windows, and some of these features may require a NPU and 16 GB of RAM. Another potential is that the 16 GB are recommendations, but not minimum requirements for AI functionality.

Closing Words

The next Windows release is expected in the second half of 2024. It could come preloaded on some Windows AI PCs, or they could get a priority upgrade to it once it is released.

Whether it is called Windows 11 version 24H2 or something else remains to be seen. The coming months will shed light on this.

Now You: are you looking forward to the next Windows release?

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You may be aware that Firefox supports Total Cookie Protection and Enhanced Tracking Protection (isolation of third-party cookies). These options prevent websites from tracking your usage across different websites. Some people may argue that containers are no longer needed, but I disagree. It is one of the most important feature in browser.

I think Firefox Containers are still useful because it offers greater control for isolating websites to your preference. You can use them for signing in to multiple accounts. For example: I have a Container for Google to access Gmail, but I use a separate Container for YouTube.

Now, let's discuss a minor problem with the Containers add-on. The Firefox Containers button that is displayed in the address bar does not let you modify the settings, all you can do is change the container that the website opens in.

There is no right-click context menu item to manage the containers, it has the same restrictions as the button in the address bar. Many extensions have a Settings page that you can access from the about:add-ons page (click on the menu > options). For example: uBlock Origin, OneTab, Violentmonkey, etc. But the Firefox Containers extension's options are not accessible from this page. So, where exactly are the options available?

You need to use the Toolbar button for Firefox Containers to manage your containers. It may be hidden from view, under the extensions menu (puzzle piece icon) on the Toolbar. I recommend pinning the Containers button to the toolbar to access it quickly.

How to manage the site list in Firefox Containers

1. Click on the Firefox Containers button on the Toolbar.

2. Select the Manage containers option at the bottom of the list.

3. Click on the container that you want to Manage.

4. Now, click on the Manage site list in the panel.

5. The add-on will display all sites that were assigned to the container.

6. Mouse over the site's name that you want to remove, and click on the trash can icon that appears next to the entry.

If you want to add a specific website to a container, right-click on the new tab button (+ icon), and select the container that you want to use. Visit the website in the same tab, and click on the Firefox Containers icon in the address bar. Assign the site to a specific container, and you are good to go. Let's say you added a website to the wrong container, don't fret, there is an easy way to fix the mistake. Click on the Firefox Containers button and assign it to the container of your choice.

You can use the container settings page (step 3) to change a container's name, icon, colour, limit it to designated sites. It also lets you configure the advanced proxy settings, or to delete the container permanently.

I think the container settings needs to be overhauled to allow moving websites from one container to another. There needs to be a faster way to manage containers, the right-click menu seems like the best choice.

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In my Look Back article this week about Microsoft's canceled MMO Mythica, I mentioned that in Mythic Entertainment's lawsuit about the game, its CEO Mark Jacobs mentioned an earlier lawsuit filed by Microsoft against a company called Lindows. I must admit I was unaware of this lawsuit, but as it turned out, Neowin actually covered this story from nearly the start to its finish back in the day.

The genesis of this legal fight began in late 2001. That's when a company called Lindows announced plans to launch a Linux-based operating system of the same name. The LindowsOS was designed to run Windows apps, and even its user interface was similar to the one Microsoft first introduced with Windows 95.

Microsoft quickly filed a lawsuit against Lindows in December 2001. Microsoft said the company was deliberately trying to confuse consumers by using the Lindows name for its company and its operating system. It asked the court to stop the company from using that name.

However, Lindows indicated in a subsequent email that it would still launch the first version of the OS in early 2002. It made good on that promise with a sneak preview release in late January 2002.

In March 2002, a judge in the case granted a preliminary injunction stating that Lindows could continue to use that name. In his ruling, U.S. District Judge John Coughenour questioned whether the word "Windows" could even be protected under current US trademark law. He also felt Microsoft had not proven that it would be hurt by another PC operating system company using the name Lindows. It was a huge legal blow for Microsoft.

Meanwhile, Lindows continued to develop the Linus-based OS of the same name. In July 2002, it was revealed that Walmart would begin selling PCs with LindowsOS preinstalled on its website with a starting price of $299.

In November 2002, Lindows announced it would sell the LindowsOS as an independent software product for the first time with the release of Lindows 3.0. The price for the OS was $129.

In December 2003, Microsoft took its case against Lindows out of the US. It got a court in Sweden to put in a temporary restraining order that prevented the company from trademarking "Lindows," "Lindows.com," and "LindowsOS" in that country.

In February 2004, the US District Court in Seattle ruled Lindows could continue to use its name until the final decision on its trademark case against Microsoft was decided. The full trial was planned for later that year.

However, the legal victories that Microsoft achieved in Sweden and other European countries caused Lindows to finally change the name of the company and the OS to Linspire in April 2004 in Europe and other places outside the US.

In July 2004, Microsoft decided to settle the case against Lindows in the US before the two companies went to a full trial. Microsoft paid a whopping $20 million to the company in exchange for it officially changing its name fully to Linspire, along with its website and OS. The Lindows trademark would also be turned over to Microsoft.

The operating system is now under the ownership of PC/OpenSystems LLC. It has continued to update its Linspire OS. Indeed, the latest commercial version, Linspire 14, was launched just over a month ago, on December 18, 2023. Every Christmas Day, the company offers a way to get Linspire for free for 24 hours. It also has a completely free version of the OS called Freespire. The latest edition of that OS launched on December 7, 2023.

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Microsoft Outlook - Improvements to folder creation are coming and more

This week's Roadmap includes a number of upcoming updates for the new Outlook for Windows and on the web. One of them, which will be added in March, will introduce a new folder creation experience.

In this update, we've introduced a more intuitive way to manage your folders and accounts. Starting soon, the creation links will be removed, streamlining your interface for a cleaner and more efficient workspace.

 

What's New: A new ellipsis icon will appear in your left nav bar when hovering the folders and accounts for a quick and easy way to create folders, subfolders or execute the existing folder and account actions ensuring a smoother workflow.

Microsoft added that the current right-click method for folder creation will still be available.

Another option that's coming in March for Outlook for Windows and web users will add two new ways to copy email items.

Ctrl + Drag and Drop: Simply hold down the Ctrl key while dragging and dropping your email items to effortlessly duplicate them. It's a quick and intuitive way to manage your emails with precision.

 

Ctrl C + Ctrl V: For those who prefer the classic copy-and-paste method, we've got you covered! Just use Ctrl C to copy the email item and Ctrl V to paste it wherever you need.

In January, OneDrive for Business will be available directly in Outlook on the web and in the classic Outlook Windows app, with a preview in February and a full rollout in March.

Microsoft Teams - Hiding general channels is coming soon and more

As usual, Microsoft Teams has a lot of new features in the Roadmap this week. One that's due in February for all Teams platforms is a nice organizational addition:

Alike other channels, now you will be able to hide general channels in your teams, helping you focus on the channels that matter most to you.

Teams Premium IT admins will also get a new feature in February for the web, Windows and Mac:

When enabled, a user will have a preset background defined by the IT admin without the ability to change the background.

That's our latest weekly look at the new additions to the Microsoft 365 Roadmap. Come back next week to see more.

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What is new in Microsoft Edge Dev 122.0.2348.0?

Improved reliability:

• Fixed a browser crash in first run experience.

• Fixed a browser crash in PDF.

• Resolved a crash issue in browser when clicking on the folder in favorites bar for workspace.

• Resolved an issue where browser crashed on closing last tab in InPrivate.

• Resolved a problem that caused the browser to crash when the ‘Save to Collections’ button was repeatedly clicked for a YouTube video.

Other changes:

• Resolved an issue where the Learning Toolkit page was blank after selecting it from ‘Settings and more’.
• Resolved an issue where the Bing web theme did not switch to dark mode when viewed on desktop.
• Resolved an issue where the preview screen of the widget was unclear in dark mode.
• The issue of the third-party cookies toggle button rendering in red colour has been resolved.
• Resolved an issue where YouTube video was not playing due to an ‘Audio Renderer Error’ and required a computer restart.
• Resolved an issue where the “hub-app-store” in the header was not functioning when clicked from the “+” icon on the sidebar.
• Fixed an issue with favorite's where an error would be displayed in search results upon entering a character.
• Fixed a problem when clicking on a PDF document on the right side of a split screen did not elicit any response.
• Resolved a problem where the focus in a split screen shifted to the Sidebar Pane upon re-entering split screen mode.
• Resolved a problem where duplicate headers were displayed on the shopping panel.
• Resolved an issue when searching via the Find bar and then moving to the sidebar did not display relevant results.
• Resolved an issue where the “Find on page” feature was not accessible in the Guest profile.
• Resolved an issue that caused the “Close” button’s colour on the Developer options page to be invisible in dark mode.
• Fixed an issue when selecting the “Manage Favorites” option for a folder resulted in an incorrect page being displayed.
• Fixed an issue where Can't open workspace window when clicking "Link" icon under favorites.
• Android: Resolved an issue where the Dark mode setting was not applied to the Drop page.
• iOS: Resolved an issue where the bottom buttons in the tab center disappeared.

You can download Microsoft Edge Dev from the official Edge Insider website. It is available on Windows, macOS, Linux, and Android. Version 122 is expected in the Stable Channel on the week of February 22, 2024.

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Google Search has been caught up in a massive tidal wave of generative AI garbage.

It's starting to look like an unrecognizable heap of spam, meaningless search engine optimization (SEO) filler, and dubiously sourced news.

"It’s the worst quality results on Google I’ve seen in my 14-year career," eminent SEO expert Lily Ray told Fortune.

Instead of filtering out scams, Google is seemingly bowing to the pressure and is instead promoting them.

"Right now, it feels like the scammers are winning," Ray added.

Researchers recently confirmed these suspicions, finding that Google is consistently ranking ad-filled spam. In a year-long study, first reported on by 404 Media, a team of German researchers studied search results for thousands of product-review terms and found some shocking results.

The team found an "inverse relationship between affiliate marketing use and content complexity, and that all search engines fall victim to large-scale affiliate link spam campaigns."

In other words, the "search engines seem to lose the cat-and-mouse game that is SEO spam," the team concluded in their paper.

And, as you might expect at this point, generative AI is likely playing a central role in the dissemination of this low-quality content.

"The line between benign content and spam in the form of content and link farms becomes increasingly blurry — a situation that will surely worsen in the wake of generative AI," the researchers write.

Despite seeing some improvement in results since the start of their experiment in terms of affiliate spam, the team still observed a "downwards trend in text quality," leaving "quite a lot of room for improvement."

There's plenty of evidence that supports the theory that generative AI is slowly ruining the internet.

With the democratization of AI-powered tools like ChatGPT, content farms are pumping out vast amounts of badly researched and often entirely unedited content.

Even once respected publications are being caught using generative AI tools — and often with less-than-stellar results, like at BuzzFeed, CNET, and Sports Illustrated.

And the technology's mutually beneficial relationship with SEO, the practice of tweaking content to increase its discoverability and have it rank higher on search results, is seemingly compounding Google's woes.

That doesn't bode well, considering AI's tenuous connection to reality and inability to tell the truth.

Google's own forays into AI-powered search leaves much to be desired. Its Search Generative Experience, which was released in beta form last year, has trouble answering simple prompts like naming "countries in Africa that start with the letter k" and sometimes gives out wildly inaccurate information.

In short, there's a good reason why users are "sharing their observation that search engines are becoming less and less capable of finding genuine and useful content satisfying their information needs," as the German researchers noted in their paper.

The "enshittification" and "junkification" of the internet is real — and generative AI is in big part to blame.

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Microsoft skipped the Canary Channel last week, and today, Brandon LeBlanc from Microsoft confirmed on his X (formerly Twitter) account that this will happen again this week. He put the blame on some bugs that haven't been fixed yet, adding that those issues were "pretty impactful to overall usability of the builds."

The last Canary Channel build, 26020, was released on January 3. However, that doesn't mean that members of the Canary Channel were completely out of the loop when it came to new additions.

Earlier this week, Microsoft released a new Windows 11 Dev Channel 23619 build. It included a new feature that sent notifications to a PC if a new picture or video was added to a linked Android smartphone. The notifications also allow Windows 11 owners to get that image or video clip and edit it on their PC.

People who have the Windows 11 Canary Channel build 26016 or higher can also get this new feature by selecting Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Mobile devices and then clicking Manage devices so they can connect their Android smartphone to their PC. Bear in mind that this new notification feature is not available for all Insiders, as Microsoft is rolling it out gradually in order to get early feedback from users.

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Today's new Windows 11 Beta Channel release also includes some bug fixes that were causing the operating system to crash. Here is the change log:

Fixes gradually being rolled out to the Beta Channel with toggle on

[Input]

 

• Fixed a tabtip.exe crash which could impact the ability to input text.

 

[Task Manager]

 

• Fixed an issue where dragging the Task Manager window wouldn’t work if your mouse was on the search box.

 

[Narrator]

 

• Fixed a crash when you tried to add natural voices for Narrator in Settings.

 

[Voice Access]

 

• Fixed an issue which was causing voice access to crash when setting up new languages.

New features for everyone in the Beta Channel

USB 80Gbps

 

We are excited to announce support for the latest generation USB standard, USB 80Gbps, in this build of Windows. USB 80Gbps support will initially launch on select devices based on the Intel Core 14th Gen HX-series mobile processors, such as the new Razer Blade 18.

 

This is the first major version update of the USB4 standard and increases performance to 80Gbps from 40Gbps. It enables the next generation of high-performance displays, storage, and connectivity. It is fully backwards compatible with peripherals built for older generations of USB and Thunderbolt™ and works alongside all other USB Type-C features.

 

FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Devices and Drivers > Buses.

 

You can check out the full blog post for the new Windows 11 Insider Beta Channel build here.

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Trendforce, a research firm and market analyst, says Microsoft is about to raise minimum hardware requirements for so-called AI PCs that will rely heavily on features powered by AI. Trendforce claims 16GB is now a baseline for AI computers running the next-generation Windows scheduled for the second half of 2024.

AI PCs are expected to drive growth in average PC memory capacity and boost the proportion of LPDDR in PC DRAM. Microsoft has set the baseline for DRAM in AI PCs at 16 GB. In the long term, TrendForce projects that AI PCs will catalyze an increase in annual demand for PC DRAM bits, with consumer upgrade trends further boosting this demand.

Citing their own sources, Tom's Hardware adds to the report, claiming that in addition to 16GB of RAM, AI PCs would need at least 40 TOPS (performance measure for computational power) to ensure snappy on-device performance and justify the "AI PC" badge.

Since we are still waiting for Microsoft even to acknowledge the existence of the so-called Windows "12," there are too many unknowns for a definitive statement. We do not know if Microsoft plans to block devices with 8GB or less RAM from updating to the next-gen Windows or if the 16GB limit is a requirement for AI-powered experiences on new devices with Windows "12" out of the box. For reference, Windows 11 will not install, at least without mods, if your system has less than 4GB of RAM.

Specific hardware requirements are still a topic for rumor-based speculation, but you can be sure some of the upcoming features will require dedicated hardware and neural processing units built into the latest chips from Intel, Qualcomm, and AMD.

Interestingly, as of right now, Intel is the only company whose chips cannot meet the rumored 40 TOPS requirement—Meteor Lake can only achieve 34 TOPS. However, The "blue camp" expects the next generation of processors to triple that value. AMD's Ryzen 8000 processors are rumored to be capable of 45 TOPS, and the same performance level is expected from Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite platform. Besides hardware limitations, users are already wondering what parts of next-gen Windows will require the recently announced Copilot Pro, a $20/mo subscription.

Microsoft has yet to decide what to call its next-gen Windows. In light of the report about 16GB of RAM being the baseline for AI PCs, keeping the Windows 11 brand makes sense. Existing PCs can continue getting updates and new features (even those with 8GB or less), while newer devices with more powerful hardware provide more software magic. That is not a new concept in the world of Microsoft. Just recall Windows Vista and its Aero theme requiring more powerful GPUs.

Details are still scarce, but you can now be sure that the next-gen Windows will need more power for its features. Although this sounds like 2021 and Windows 11 again, it is easier to explain to customers that new features need more horsepower. That is a big contrast to Windows 11's abstract security improvements that rendered older computers (still running perfectly fine) incapable of running Windows 11 officially.

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According to a support document published by Microsoft, Mac users have two options if they want to run Windows on their machines, assuming buying a computer designed for Windows 11 (sacrilege, we know) is not an option: Windows 365 or Parallels Desktop.

Microsoft says Parallels Desktop versions 18 and 19 are officially authorized for running Windows 11 for ARM and Windows 11 Enterprise on Macs powered by the Apple M1, M2, and M3 processor families. The operating system can run inside a virtual machine, giving the customer access to most of its features, including multimedia technologies, hardware acceleration, DirectX 12, and more.

At the same time, some features are not available in Parallels Desktop, mostly due to the missing nested virtualization support. As such, you cannot use Windows Subsystem for Android, Windows Subsystem for Linux, Windows Sandbox (a special feature that lets you run isolated apps without risking your main installation), and Virtualization-based Security, which is also known as VBS. If you need one of those features, consider Windows 365 or purchasing a separate device made for running Windows 11 natively.

Finally, Parallels Desktop for Mac cannot run 32-bit Windows apps made for ARM (Microsoft deprecated 32-bit UWP apps for ARM in January 2023). Apple ditched 32-bit app support long ago, and there is nothing you can do to bring it back on modern macOS versions.

Parallels Desktop 19 for Mac costs $99.99/year for the standard edition or $119.99 for Pro. Right now, you can get the latter with a 25% discount on Amazon.

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

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Windows 11 Development Environment (that is the official name for Microsoft's Windows 11-based virtual machines) version 2401 is based on Windows 11 Enterprise version 22H2 with build number 22621.3007, the latest Patch Tuesday update released on January 9, 2024. As usual, it includes all the tools and apps one will need for building Windows applications:

• Visual Studio 2022 Community Edition with UWP, .NET Desktop, Azure, and Windows App SDK for C# workloads.
• Windows Subsystem for Linux 2 with Ubuntu preinstalled.
• Windows Terminal.
• Developer Mode turned on by default.

There is still no Windows 11 version 23H2-based virtual machines, so expect them in February or March 2024.

You can use Microsoft's free Windows 11 virtual machines for free without purchasing a license key or activation. Moreover, Microsoft will not even let you do that—the FAQ section makes it clear that Windows 11 Development Environment VMs do not support activation with a product key. If the downloaded virtual machine shows an activation error, run the built-in Windows Activation Troubleshooter or wait a few hours for the problem to resolve itself automatically.

Windows 11 Development Environment virtual machines are available in four pre-built configurations: Hyper-V Gen 2, VMWare, VirtualBox, and Parallels (for macOS). You need at least 70GB of free space on your drive (double that since you must unpack it before installing) and a minimum of 8GB of RAM.

You can download a free Windows 11 virtual machine from the official website. Version 2401 will expire on April 9, 2024.

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Here is the change log:

What’s new in Build 23619

Instantly access new photos and screenshots from your mobile device

 

We are also beginning to gradually roll out a new feature for Windows that introduces the ability to effortlessly access and edit your most recent photos and screenshots from your Android mobile device in Snipping Tool on your PC. With this feature, you’ll receive instant notifications on your PC whenever a new photo or screenshot is captured on your Android device.

 

Windows notification prompting to open capture in Snipping Tool for markup.

 

To enable this experience, go to Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Mobile devices (this settings page was updated with Build 26016 in the Canary Channel and Build 23606 in the Dev Channel) and choose “Manage devices” and allow your PC to access your Android phone. Your PC will get a Cross Device Experience Host update in the Microsoft Store that is required for this experience to work.

 

New settings window for managing mobile devices that are allowed to connect to your PC.

 

This new experience replaces the remote capture with Phone Link experience that was announced back in September.

 

[We are beginning to roll this out to Windows Insiders in BOTH the Canary and Dev Channels this week, so the experience isn’t available to all Insiders just yet as we plan to monitor feedback before pushing it out to everyone.]

 

FEEDBACK: Please file feedback in Feedback Hub (WIN + F) under Devices and Drivers > Linked devices.

Changes and Improvements

[Start menu]

 

• For people logged into Windows 11 Pro or Enterprise editions with a Microsoft Entra ID account, we are trying out the ability to view and join upcoming Microsoft Teams meetings directly from the Start menu. The next online Teams meeting will show up as a Recommended item 5 minutes before it begins, clicking the meeting recommendation will open the join meeting flow in Teams.

Join upcoming Microsoft Teams meetings directly Start menu.

Fixes

[File Explorer]

 

• Did some more work to help improve the launch performance of File Explorer.

 

[Task Manager]

 

• Fixed an issue where dragging the Task Manager window wouldn’t work if your mouse was on the search box.

 

[Other]

 

• Fixed a crash when you tried to add natural voices for Narrator in Settings.

 

NOTE: Some fixes noted here in Insider Preview builds from the Dev Channel may make their way into the servicing updates for the released version of Windows 11.

Known issues

[Copilot in Windows]

 

• When first launching or after refreshing Copilot in Windows while using voice access, you’ll need to use “Show grid” commands to click in the “Ask me anything” box for the first time.

 

[Widgets]

 

• Announcements from the Microsoft Start feed are still shown on the taskbar after the feed is hidden.
• Keyboard navigation from settings subpages back to the top-level Settings page is broken.
• Incorrect spacing and fonts used in some settings pages.

You can check out the full blog post here.

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What you need to know

• Microsoft will soon add multiple AI and search options to the Edge screenshot tool.
• The company is already testing a shortcut to Chat with Copilot, a Text Detector, Search image with Bing, and Search text with Bing.
• Samsung recently announced similar features for its flagship smartphones, but Circle to Search uses Google, not Bing.

Microsoft Edge's screenshot tool will soon include shortcuts to Chat with Copilot. Microsoft also plans to add several other options to the tool, including Text Detector, Search image with Bing, and Search text with Bing. The new options were spotted by Leo Varela, who keeps a close eye on Edge developments.

Copilot is being placed front and center by Microsoft within several apps and services. Windows 11 already has a Copilot shortcut for the Taskbar and Edge has one in its Sidebar. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella promised that all of the company's products will have AI in some form or another, and more often than not that includes a version of Copilot.

Microsoft first introduced separate versions of Copilot with different branding. The company then shifted to a unified Copilot approach that extends across Bing, Edge, and Windows. With Copilot appearing on more services and expanding in functionality, it makes sense that Microsoft wants a strong brand that it can push.

Microsoft AI minus the Bing brand

Microsoft seems to be shifting away from the Bing brand when it comes to AI products and services. (Image credit: Windows Central / Copilot)

Speaking of branding, while Microsoft continues its march to get all of its services to have Copilot integration, the company is doing so without the Bing brand. Bing Chat is now Copilot with Bing Chat. Bing Chat Enterprise is now Copilot Pro. Just last week, Microsoft specified that Bing Image Creator is now called Creator from Designer.

Microsoft hasn't stated an official shift away from the Bing brand, but actions speak louder than words. Based on what Microsoft has changed and announced recently, the tech giant seems to have more faith in the Copilot brand than the Bing brand. That's not surprising, since Bing has been a joke to many for years.

Despite the addition of Bing Chat and GPT tech from OpenAI, Bing usage actually dropped year-over-year. Why attach Microsoft's AI efforts to a struggling search engine name when you can start fresh with "Copilot" as a brand?

Copilot everywhere

Microsoft appears eager to get Copilot in front of users at every opportunity. Earlier this year, Microsoft announced that Windows PCs will feature a Copilot key. That news drew a surprising amount of criticism that was shared on Reddit and across the web.

Much of the criticism centered around Copilot argues that Microsoft is "forcing" AI onto people. While I don't think a button to open Copilot forces people to use the tool, it does force people to see a shortcut to Copilot. If Microsoft puts Copilot shortcuts in enough places throughout Windows 11, some will likely feel pestered.

A hidden feature discovered this month indicates that Microsoft has some Copilot functionality on the way to File Explorer. While it's not clear how File Explorer will work with Copilot, one theory is that Windows will make it easier to send a file to Copilot through a shortcut in the context menu.

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What you need to know

• Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, and other Chromium browsers should soon see speed improvements on Window 11.
• A recent contribution to Chromium expanded the Application Launch Prefetch range (APLF) range from 1-8 to 1-16.
• APLF affects optimization on Windows 11, and its improved range should result in quicker and smoother performance for Microsoft Edge.

Microsoft Edge should soon have better performance, thanks to a recent contribution to the Chromium Project. The change widens the /prefetch parameter from 1-8 to 1-16. In plain English, that means Edge can start quicker, load webpages faster, and overall be better than it is today.

The contribution to the Chromium Project was spotted by Windows Report. The contribution page for the change outlines the improvement and its current status.

What is prefetching on Windows?

An upcoming change to Edge should speed up load times and improve performance. (Image credit: Future)

Microsoft rolled out the ability to prefetch content with Windows 8.1. The functionality has improved over time, including the recent expansion of its range. A PC can have certain content cached locally, allowing for quicker access when needed.  In short, Windows keeps content on your system and then can load it to memory before it launches an application.

Prefetch is a bit like having the ingredients on the counter already when you need to make a recipe. Windows has the ingredients in an easily accessible place, which means it doesn't need to go to the web to get that content. If your system doesn't have the content it needs, it will just get it from the web, similar to if you forgot an ingredient and need to grab it from a cupboard.

When explaining the recent change, the contribution page explains how the expanded range helps:

"The /prefetch parameter is used to differentiate different file access patterns for the same process name. The range was 1..8, it is now 1..16 for Windows 11 and later allowing for better process separation, especially for renderers, and utility processes," explains the page.

Microsoft has a page for developers about Application Launch Prefetch range (APLF). But if you're an everyday user who doesn't need to know the ins and outs of browser development, just know the change should be good news.

Does Google own Chromium?

While Google Chrome is Chromium-based, the two are separate. (Image credit: Future)

I don't want to give Google too much credit for a contribution made by another organization. The contribution discussed above is by Joe Laughlin, who has a Microsoft email address.

Chromium is a free and open-source project, so Google does not own it. Chromium is owned by the Chromium Project. Google is a major contributor to the project, but there are other notable contributors, including Microsoft. Google does, however, maintain Chromium, so the company is involved in all improvements at some level.

Several browsers use Chromium as a base and then have proprietary technology built on top of it, such as Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge. Opera and Samsung Internet also use Chromium.

The recent change related to prefetch will ultimately help Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, and other Chromium browsers. It's one of those situations where high tides raise all ships. There's no need for Microsoft and Google to hold back when it comes to improving Chromium, since the browsers of both companies use the project.

The improvements to prefetch are currently in testing in Microsoft Edge Canary. Assuming all goes well in testing, the improvement should make its way to the stable version of Edge in the future.

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Windows tells you that the Microsoft account that you want to add to the system exists on it already.

While it is clearly not possible to add the same Microsoft account multiple times to a Windows system, it may also happen that you get the error when trying to add your own account or want to switch to it while using a local account.

I ran into this issue recently during a test. I signed-in to Windows using a Microsoft account, went to the Account settings and activated the "stop signing in to all Microsoft apps automatically" there to turn it into a local account. Quite the confusing name for the option, right?

Note that some users may also see "Sign in with a local account instead".

This worked without issues. When I tried to switch to the Microsoft account, it looked at first as if this was not a problem at all.

Microsoft prompted for the account email address and password, and also two-factor verification. It then prompted to type the Windows account password one last time before making the switch to the Microsoft account.

Once the password was provided, it three the "is already here" error prompt. There was no further explanation about the error and clicking on next returned to the Your info screen in the Windows settings.

This had to be a bug. I tried again with the same result. Next thing I tried was to check for existing accounts. I checked the Family members section and the other users section under Accounts. There was no Microsoft account with that name listed there.

Puzzled, I decided to get the heavy guns out. Opened Start, typed lusrmgr.msc and loaded the result. This opened the list of local users and groups management interface.

The selection of "Users" displayed the list of all users known to the system. I discovered that the Microsoft account was listed there next to the user account. Note that you find names listed there only and not email addresses.

Keep the window open for now.

Since this is not perfect, as it is easy enough to confuse usernames, it is better to verify the finding.

1. Select Start, type PowerShell and press the Enter key to launch the terminal application.
2. Run the command Get-LocalUser -Name 'Username' | Select PrincipalSource. Replace Username with the name of the user account (which is listed in the previous application).

Fixing the "is already here" error in Windows

All that is required is to delete the existing Microsoft account on the system. Please note that this should not have any consequences on the account you are signed-in with.

Cautious users may want to create a system backup first. In case something goes wrong, it is then easy to restore the system backup and restore the status quo. You may use my preferred tool Paragon Backup & Recovery Free for that, or any other backup program that supports full system backups.

Go back to the users and groups management window that you opened earlier. Right-click on an account and select Delete to remove it from the system. Make sure it is the right one!

Confirm the action and wait for the account to be removed.

Now go back to Settings > Account > My Info and try to switch from the local account to the Microsoft account. It should work this time.

Closing Words

The bug is puzzling, as it prevents you from switching back to your own Microsoft account, even though you may have used it before on the system already. Deleting an account on the system resolves the issue, but it may still be something that many users shy away from.

Anyway, please let me know if this helped you if you ran into the issue.

Tip: did you know that you may still set up Windows 11 without a Microsoft account?

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Wine is the compatibility layer for running Windows applications and games on non-Windows platforms, including Linux, Mac, and Android. Wine 9.0 has now been released after a year of development, improving compatibility and adding some great new features.

The Wine project announced the update this week in a blog post, saying, "This release represents a year of development effort and over 7,000 individual changes." The most important new feature might be support for WoW64, which allows 32-bit Windows software to run on a purely 64-bit operating system—before now, 32-bit applications ran in a separate 32-bit Unix process, which wasn't always an option. For example, macOS has not supported 32-bit software, and the proprietary CrossOver compatibility layer (based on Wine) had its own custom solution for translation. It's not enabled by default, though, because it breaks compatibility with 16-bit code and reduces OpenGL performance.

Wine 9.0 also includes experimental support for Wayland, the display system replacing X11 on many Linux distributions. Instead of running in the XWayland environment, it can do basic window management, multiple monitors, high-DPI scaling, motion events, and Vulkan support directly through Wayland. The Wayland support is not enabled by default, but once it's ready, Wine should feel more responsive on modern Linux computers with better display scaling.

Performance and Windows compatibility is improved in Wine 9.0 as well. There's an updated Vulkan driver, a built-in Windows Media Video (WMV) decoder, and improved Direct3D support.

Wine 9.0 is rolling out to package managers and front-ends now. It's not clear when Valve's Proton compatibility layer will be updated with the new base, but whenever that happens, Steam on Linux should work more reliably with more Windows games.

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Rufus 4.4 adds support for GRUB 2.12 (bootloader for Unix operating systems) and a workaround for Linux distros with broken symbolic links as their UEFI bootloaders. In addition, the update fixes crashes when working with .FFU images (namely when saving images), and no longer lists Microsoft Dev Drives, which are special Windows 11 partitions optimized for developer-related tasks and workflows. There is also better support for SDCX card readers.

Here is the complete changelog for Rufus 4.4:

• Add workaround for distros that use broken symbolic links as their UEFI bootloaders (such as Mint 21.3).
• Add support for GRUB 2.12.
• Fix a crash when saving .ffu images.
• Fix UEFI:NTFS partition not being added, in MBR mode, for some Linux ISOs.
• Prevent Microsoft Dev Drives from being listed.
• Improve support for SDXC card readers.
• Improve Large FAT32 formatting by aligning start of data regions to 1 MB.

You can get Rufus for your Windows computer from the official website or GitHub. Rufus is also available in the Microsoft Store for those preferring downloading apps and games there. The app supports Windows 8 and newer (Windows 7 support was dropped in version 4.0, released in April 2023), plus it can run on systems with ARM processors.

If you are unfamiliar with Rufus, check out our guide detailing how to create a bootable Windows media. You can also use it to make a USB for installing Windows 11 version 23H2 on unsupported hardware. Rufus can bypass the limitations so that you do not have to tweak the install image yourself.

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After launching it in June 2023, WhatsApp is making a few changes to its Channels. Now, Channel admins can engage with their followers through a couple of new ways.

WhatsApp Channels was introduced to provide one-way communication to users. It lets users follow Channels on WhatsApp that align with their interests and hobbies.

In an update shared today, WhatsApp has officially announced that Channels is getting a poll feature and voice updates. Mark Zuckerberg also revealed the changes on his WhatsApp Channel stating:

"Hi everyone! We're announcing a bunch of new features for WA channels including voice notes, multiple admins, and sharing to status and polls..."

In a Facebook post, WhatsApp shared that the Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny is the first person to send a voice update to followers on his Channel. The feature works like a normal voice note but offers a new way for admins to contact their followers.

Another functionality WhatsApp is now rolling out to everyone is polls. WABetaInfo revealed this feature sometime last week when some Beta testers were able to access it.

It highlighted that polls on Channels can be limited to a single choice and the interface is also similar to that of group and individual chats for sharing polls.

According to WABetaInfo, the poll voters remain anonymous to not only other followers of the channel but to the owner as well. These polls were already available to group chats but are now coming to Channels.

Moreover, WhatsApp Channels is adding more admins to one Channel. Initially, there could only be one admin but now there can be up to 16 admins.

Admins can be added through the “Invite Admins” option accessible via the channel description page.

Lastly, WhatsApp is letting users share Channel updates on their Status on WhatsApp. This is to inform users about the latest updates being posted by the admin.

Hence, when a user presses the image or a message shared in the Channel, they can either forward it to other users or share it to their personal status in the form of Stories on WhatsApp.

Apart from this, WhatsApp added the ability to create your stickers on iOS last week. The capability automatically creates a sticker of the image selected by the user. The sticker can also be edited by adding text and can be shared with others.

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What you need to know

• In a new video posted on the Windows Channel on YouTube, Microsoft demonstrates how easy it is to move to Windows 11.
• Windows 11's adoption has been slow owing to the strict set minimum requirements needed to run the OS on a PC. 
• Microsoft urges users to transition to Windows 11 as Windows 10's cutoff date is fast approaching. 

Microsoft recently posted a new video on its Windows Channel on YouTube. The short clip, dubbed "Make Your Move to Windows 11 Easier," depicts how easy it is for users to transition to Windows 11, according to a spot by Beta News.

The video takes you through a step-by-step process, starting off with the backup process via Windows Backup to ensure that you make the move with all your important files and data.

Microsoft also highlights the importance of backing up your files using OneDrive, as they'll be stored in the cloud. This makes it easier to access your most treasured files in your new Windows PC after installing Windows 11.

The best part perhaps about this entire process, is that you also get the chance to transition to Windows 11 with your personalized browser experience on Microsoft Edge, including saved passwords and favorites. 

Windows 10 reigns over Windows 11 despite inevitable cutoff date

(Image credit: Microsoft)

Microsoft launched Windows 11 over two years ago with the hopes that users would transition to the new OS from Windows 10, but this isn't the case. Windows 11 continues to experience a slow adoption rate, predominantly because of the strict minimum system requirements needed to run the OS on your PC, coupled with the currently depressed PC market.

Windows 10 is set to hit its end-of-support date in October 2025, and Microsoft has been urging users to make the transition to Windows 11 before the cutoff date, Microsoft's decision to end support for Windows 10 has been received with mixed feelings. Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) tabled a petition asking Microsoft's CEO, Satya Nadella, to reconsider the move.

Microsoft has already shipped its AI-powered assistant, Copilot to Windows 10 users, and more recently the Dev Home app alongside Windows 11's rich weather interface. 

It remains a big mystery whether Microsoft will reconsider its move to cut support for Windows 10 and extend its lifeline, though its ESU program sort of covers this, since it allows users to pay for monthly security updates beyond Windows 10's end-of-support date.

In the petition, the research group indicated that the move would lead to "the single biggest jump in junked computers ever," further steering the tech giant away from its sustainability goals. 

Admittedly, per a survey by StatCounter, 71.9% of users still use Windows 10 while 22.95% use Windows 10. A clear indication that Windows 10 still holds a huge stake of the market share despite being so close to its cut off date.

That said, Windows 11 is already running on 400 million devices, with projections of the figure shooting to half a billion early this year through to 2025 as Windows 10's cutoff date edges closer. 

It's worth noting that Microsoft is getting ready to ship Windows 11's Moment 5 feature drop in February, with a plethora of quality of life improvements and more. What's more, rumors hitting the windmill indicate that the compnay is also getting ready to ship Windows 12, which will be baked with AI capabilities later this year. 

Have you already transitioned to Windows 11? If not, why? Let us know in the comments.

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Recently, YouTuber AR 4789, who is a prolific Windows concept creator, presented one where Windows XP was showcased in the style of Windows 11. The same creator has now published their latest work, and this time, instead of going the retro route, they took up the challenge to imagine the next version of Windows, "Windows 12," as the next revolutionary operating system from Microsoft in their next concept video named "Windows 12 - The Revolutionary."

The concept imagines that the hypothetical Windows 12 combines a minimalistic approach with intuitiveness and clean, gorgeous visual effects, an OS that marries aesthetics with functionality.

The Start menu is simplified and launches from a small main button menu at the bottom. The power, settings, and other options are at the top of the Start menu. The design, of course, has rounded corners, which is one of the hallmarks of Windows 11.

You will also notice that the taskbar is at the top with a tiled Quick Settings Action Center that is customizable according to user needs.

Up next, we have the File Explorer (on the top) and the Settings app (on the bottom). Note that the creator has mislabeled the Settings app as "Files" as well.

Here is the concept of Windows 12 in its full glory with the Start menu and Widgets.

Finally, we have AI-generated wallpapers for the desktop. If you recall, Microsoft has worked on AI-based desktop effects for Windows 11, even though most of its efforts have undoubtedly gone towards Copilot.

AI-generated wallpapers

You can watch the video in full below:

Bear in mind, though, that this is just an animated concept, and making a real thing like this without all sorts of bugs and issues is probably going to be a far more difficult task, even for a company the size of Microsoft.

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In 2023, Microsoft announced that it would redirect the Mail and Calendar app to the new Outlook application. It allowed users to go back to the Mail and Calendar app for a while but noted that this option would become unavailable in 2024.

Reports suggest that Microsoft has now started the migration of users from Mail and Calendar to the new Outlook app.

A short notification is displayed to users who launch Mail and Calendar on their devices. This notification is removed automatically and users are redirected to the new Outlook app afterwards. There appears to be no option to stop the redirection or do anything about it.

Not all users are redirected at this point. A test on two Windows 11 systems was unsuccessful. Mail and Calendar opened as usual on these systems and there was no redirect. It is likely, however, that Microsoft is rolling out the change over time to the entire population.

Not all Windows users are happy about the migration. The new Outlook app should not be confused with the dedicated Outlook app that is part of Office. It is a free app that looks very similar to the Outlook web application. This does not surprise, as the new Outlook client is based on the web version.

Critics of the move argue that the new Outlook app is not matching all features of the removed apps. It also feels slower and less native than the removed apps. Proton, maker of Proton Mail and other services, claimed recently that Microsoft's new Outlook app was communicating with over 770 advertising partners.

The new Outlook app is the new standard email app on Windows. While the classic Mail and Calendar app may still be installed on older devices, only Outlook is installed on newer devices.

Windows users who want to avoid this may switch to a different email client. There is the open source and free Thunderbird email client and others. The dedicated Outlook app for Office may also look like a good choice. It is for now, but Microsoft revealed plans already to migrate it to the new Outlook app as well in the future.

Now You: which email program is your favorite?

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Besides adding support for the latest GPU from NVIDIA, 546.65 WHQL addresses bugs related to Cyberpunk 2077 and resolves the issue preventing monitors from waking up when connected to Maxwell-based NVIDIA graphics cards. Also, 546.65 WHQL adds DLSS 2 support for Palworld. Finally, there are five more games with GeForce Experience Optimal Settings support: Apocalypse Party, Ash Echoes, Escape from Tarkov: Arena, House Flipper 2, and Pioneers of Pagonia.

What is new in NVIDIA 546.65 WHQL?

Here is the official changelog:

What is new

 

Game Ready for GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER This new Game Ready Driver provides the best gaming experience for the latest new games supporting DLSS technology including Palworld which features support for DLSS 2.

 

Fixed Issues in Version 546.65 WHQL

 

• Cyberpunk 2077: GeForce Experience 1-click optimization not working with v2.1 game update.
• Maxwell GPU: After multiple sleep/wake attempts, monitor may not wake up.

NVIDIA also warns about the following known issues:

Open Issues in Version 546.65 WHQL

 

• [Netflix] Display issues for videos when using Edge browser. Recommend using Windows Netflix application as workaround.

 

Issues Not Caused by NVIDIA Drivers

 

• Under Windows 10, clone mode across graphics processors is handled by the Windows OS, and not by the NVIDIA driver. Consequently, there are no controls for cross-adapter clone mode in the NVIDIA Control Panel under Windows 10.
• Because cross-adapter clone mode is handled by the Windows 10 OS, there are no display controls in the NVIDIA Control Panel if no display is connected to the NVIDIA GPU on Optimus notebooks
• [Windows 10 Fall Creators Update][HDTV]: 12 bpc is automatically applied even on HDTVs that support only 8 bpc, resulting in a scrambled display. To work around, open the NVIDIA Control Panel -> Change Resolution page, select “Use NVIDIA colour settings,” then set the Output colour depth to 8 bpc.
• Some games and applications are designed to run at a fixed frame rate, and consequently do not take advantage of NVIDIA G-Sync. To prevent issues, G-Sync may be disabled for those applications.

You can download the NVIDIA 546.65 WHQL Game-Ready driver from the official website or via the GeForce Experience app. More information about this release is available here.

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Copilot (free) vs Copilot Pro: Availability

Copilot is available across a number of different platforms and apps. (Image credit: Ben Wilson | Windows Central)

Microsoft Copilot is a cross-platform AI assistant that's available on Windows, Android, iOS, and the web as a standalone experience, and can also be found inside some Microsoft apps such as Edge and Office. 

Microsoft doesn't have a definitive list of regions that Copilot is available in, but it does have a list of supported languages, which includes English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Spanish, and Chinese (Simplified.) Copilot Pro is available to purchase in the following markets, and costs $20 USD a month for individual users:

• Austria
• Australia
• Brazil
• Canada
• Switzerland
• Germany
• Spain
• France
• United Kingdom
• India
• Italy
• Japan
• Mexico
• New Zealand
• United States

Microsoft says availability of the Copilot Pro subscription will roll out to more markets over time. Copilot (free) should already function in all of the markets above, as well as additional markets.

Copilot (free) vs Copilot Pro: Features

How does Copilot differ across the free and paid versions? (Image credit: Microsoft)

Copilot (free) and Copilot Pro share many of the same features, with Copilot Pro offering some additional functionality and faster performance in some tasks. 

Copilot (free) includes the following features:

• Access on the web, mobile, and on Windows, macOS and iPadOS
• Access to GPT-4 and GPT-4 Turbo during non-peak times
• Utilize text, voice and images in conversational search
• Create AI images with 15 boosts per day with Designer
• Support for plugins and GPTs

Copilot Pro includes all of that, plus:

• Priority access to GPT-4 and GPT-4 Turbo, including during peak times for accelerated performance to get things done faster
• Access to Copilot in selected Microsoft 365 apps to draft documents, summarize emails, create presentations and more
• Create AI images with DALL-E 3 in landscape format even faster with 100 boosts per day with Designer (formerly Bing Image Creator)

Breaking down the difference in features, Copilot Pro unlocks the Copilot assistant inside Word, PowerPoint, Excel, OneNote, and Outlook. Copilot for Microsoft 365 benefits users who already subscribe to the productivity suite, and is the main selling point of the Copilot Pro subscription.

Copilot Pro also includes "priority access" to GPT-4 and GPT-4 Turbo AI models, meaning there is dedicated capacity reserved exclusively for users who pay for Microsoft's subscription. This additional capacity means users won't have to wait when there is high demand for the AI assistant, meaning Copilot Pro is overall faster during peak times.

The free version of Copilot will drop down to the older GPT 3.5 during peak times, whereas Copilot Pro will remain at GPT-4 and GPT-4 Turbo.

Copilot Pro also comes with more Image Creator by Designer boosts, which Microsoft uses as tokens for when a user requests a generated image. The free version of Copilot comes with just 15 boosts per day, whereas Copilot Pro users have 100 boosts a day to play with. The more boosts you have, the more you can use the Image Creator by Designer. 

Copilot (free vs Copilot Pro: Microsoft Office

Copilot Pro unlocks the ability to use Copilot inside Microsoft Office apps. The free version of Copilot does not include access to this functionality. Currently, Copilot is available in the following Microsoft 365 apps:

• Word
• PowerPoint
• Excel
• OneNote
• Outlook

Copilot for Office is more than just a tool that helps you create content. It can even teach you how to use certain functions within a particular Office app. So if you're unsure how to create a formula, or format a Word document in a certain way, Copilot will be able to show you how, and even do it for you. Here is what Copilot can do across the different Office apps.

Copilot for Word

Copilot in Word includes features called Draft and Chat. Draft mode lets users generate text inside new or existing Word documents, formatted and presented based on criteria set out by the user. 

Chat mode acts as an AI assistant for the Word app, allowing users to ask Copilot questions about how to use Word, suggestions on what content to include in a particular document, and help with controlling features within the app. 

Copilot for PowerPoint

Copilot in PowerPoint features much of the same capabilities as it does in Word, including the ability to create a PowerPoint presentation from scratch based on criteria provided by the user. It can even analyze an existing Word document and create a presentation based off the information inside it. 

Copilot for Excel

Copilot in Excel can analyze tables and help show correlations, suggest new formulas based on questions asked by the user, and generate insights that help explore data in a spreadsheet. It can format and organize your data, create visualizations, or ask for general formula column suggestions based on your data.

Copilot for OneNote

Copilot in OneNote can help you draft ideas, plans, and organize information within your Notebooks. It can also format content and create lists based on criteria provided by the user. 

Copilot for Outlook

Copilot for Outlook is able to summarize emails from friends, family, and colleagues and draft a response based on a specific tone, length, and format specified by the user. Copilot can also pull information and data from other emails to provide context in an email thread, useful for when you are dealing with multiple email chains.

Copilot (free) vs Copilot Pro: Should you upgrade?

Should you upgrade from the free version of Copilot to the monthly Copilot Pro subscription for $20? If you are a casual user of Copilot and perfectly content with the performance and feature set of the free version, there is no reason to upgrade.

If you are a Microsoft Office user, the argument is a little less clear-cut. Copilot Pro unlocks AI features in Office, which in apps like PowerPoint, Excel, and Outlook are really game changing. Being able to command Copilot to help put together a PowerPoint presentation based on a Word document or email is incredible, and saves a lot of time.

If that's the sort of thing you value, then a Copilot Pro subscription is recommended. For $20 a month, it's not cheap, but we expect Copilot Pro to gain additional features over time that might make it more worth it in the future.

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With the latest release, Windows users can receive a message when the Microsoft Store has finished installing an app or game. Besides letting the customer know that a product is ready for use, the new notifications provide two extra quick actions: launch the app or game or pin it to the Start menu. The same capability was in Windows 10, and now Windows 11 users can try it.

Microsoft Store version 22312 enables install notifications by default. If you do not like this behavior and prefer not to receive any notifications from the Microsoft Store app, Microsoft lets you turn them off. Here is how to do that:

1. Launch the Microsoft Store app and click your profile icon in the upper-right corner.
2. Click "Settings."
3. Toggle off the "Notifications for app installations" option.

   

    

To check your current Microsoft Store version, go to Settings, scroll down to the About section, and see the version number.

The Microsoft Store app will soon get even more improvements. Windows Insiders are currently testing the ability to open instant games from search results, better app discoverability with improved algorithms, and overall snappier performance with bug fixes. Microsoft ships Store updates relatively quickly, so you can expect those changes to land in the Stable Channel in no time.

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